I think for Vardy there probably is the motivation thing that he & Leicester could prove that last season's win was no fluke!! I doubt many are going to predict back to back titles for the Foxes and also that there won't be no 5000/1 odds on another team winning the title this season!!
2 mistakes, 3 r's and lack of one between a and d
After missing a penalty in the Copa, Messi announced his retirement from international football at the age of 29. Talk about taking it badly.
It will be strange not to see him art the world cup any more I would not put it past you that he will change his mind
(27-06-2016 09:12 )Charlemagne Wrote: [ -> ]After missing a penalty in the Copa, Messi announced his retirement from international football at the age of 29. Talk about taking it badly.
To be fair to the man he's lost 3 major finals in 3 years at international level & is the only one to be blamed when this happens by both the Argentinian fans & media as they say he goes ' missing ' in finals , he can't win a final on his own & he shouldn't have to with the players in that team . They never look at the criticism the Argentinian FA deserve as they are routinely poor in planning and preparation according to people who are regularity around the team .
He has certainly gone down in my estimation after hearing that. I was never a fan of Beckham but at least had the decency to let his country retire from him rather than the other way round.
This is from Guillem Balague on why , to an extent , Messi dislikes playing for Argentina:
Why doesn't Argentina appreciate Lionel Messi as much as the rest of world football?
A lot of Argentinians do but there are a bunch of very noisy ones that have, to some extent, made his life hell when he is in Argentina. They believe he is not Argentinian enough, that he doesn't try hard enough for the team and that he doesn't play the same as he does for Barcelona, despite that being obvious because he doesn't have the same level of players around him. That has been eroding his love of playing for the national side in a way.
I have the impression that he would have taken this decision, a decision which has taken everyone by surprise, no matter what, although he would have hoped to have done so with a win. Five consecutive victories in the Copa America but falling at the final hurdle again for the third consecutive time was very hurtful; we saw him crying and then the decision was announced. I do feel that at 29 years old, he probably thought that was it for him anyway.
We know how passionate people are about football in Argentina but the kind of accusations directed towards Messi were ridiculous. He was whistled sometimes and you could hear people say: 'You're not like Diego Maradona' and 'If we paid you in Euros, perhaps you would play better'. He was close to quitting the national side in 2011 due to the level of abuse he received after Argentina were eliminated from the Copa America in the quarter-finals.
As you well know, having followed Spanish football for a number of years, Messi lives in Argentina and goes to train in Barcelona. Everything around him is Argentinian; television, supermarkets and restaurants - he feels more Argentinian than ever and he hasn't lost the accent. But he hasn't helped his side get to the level he wanted and he feels that's enough.
EDIT : From this article
http://www.skysports.com/football/news/1...retirement - also explains that a few other players including Higuain & Aguero could follow.